It’s only once the two jointly return to the village that 2005-era players began to nurture an unfair irritation at Ashley. By that point of play, you’ve developed some facility at controlling Leon, but now you’re stymied by the added consideration of protecting a noncombatant while you fight. It’s tough! It takes some practice to figure it out! But instead of simply taking a breath and accepting the challenge of grasping a new mechanic, many players (including my mid-’00s self) jumped to blame Ashley’s civilian NPC presence for the inconvenience instead of taking a deep breath and just getting good at the entire escort mission point of the game. It’s important to examine your most unflattering angles from time to time. To become Leon, we must reflect upon the ways in which he has struggled and subsequently improved over the years. The ugliest bit of Leon’s history stems from the players controlling his actions and our collective treatment of Ashley Graham, the nepo-baby-in-chief we’ve all come to this anonymous, anachronistic Spanish village to rescue.